Easy-to-make Russian Recipes

The Russian Federation

The Russian Federation is what Russia is today. The capital of the Russian Federation is Moscow and other cities in the Russian Federation include St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad), Klin, Volgograd (formerly Stalingrad), Perm, Smolensk, Kislievodsk, Sochi, Ekaterininburg (formerly known as Sverdlovsk), Novosibirsk, Irkutsk, Khabarovsk and Vladivostok.
Russia is predominantly in the North but its southern borders get into continental and even subtropical climates. Sochi, for example, is on the Black Sea, near the Georgian border and is in a subtropical zone. Places like Volgograd, Samara, and the Volga are in a more continental climate which sees hot summers and very cold winters.
Siberia has a very harsh climate, being hot in the summer except up near the Arctic Circle and very cold in the winter time. In some places in Siberia, the summers may be hot, but the ground can still be frozen several feet under the top soil.
Other republics that have a similar climate to Russia include Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. These three republics have a very large Russian speaking population and also have their own national languages. In Belarus, both Belarussian and Russian are spoken. In Ukraine, Ukrainian is spoken.
Both Ukrainian and Belarussian are Slavic languages and use the Cyrillic alphabet. In fact both of those languages are very close to Russian in many ways. Furthermore, because the cultures of Belarus and Ukraine are close to Russian culture, the cuisine is also similar.
Kazakhstan, on the other hand, is different. Kazakh also uses the Cyrillic alphabet but is not a Slavic language. Kazakh is more of Central Asian origin. In Kazakhstan, there are many Russians, so there the cuisine is also the same as in Russia or very close.
Some other republics that made up the former Soviet Union have cultures and cuisine that is completely different from Russian culture and cuisine. Some of these other republics also have delicious recipes and are listed below.
Georgia borders Russia to its south and has some of the spiciest and most unique dishes in the former Soviet Union. Georgia is similar to Russia in that Georgia is predominantly Orthodox Christian. The Georgian language is completely different from Russian and even has a different alphabet that has its roots in ancient Aramaic.
Uzbekistan is a central Asian republic that is south of Kazakhstan and is predominantly Muslim. Its cuisine is best-known for plov, which is a delicious rice pilaf and liula kebabs. Uzbekistan is primarily in the desert and is very hot in the summer.
Armenia is south of Georgia and is known for its dolma which are stuffed grape leaves with ground pork or other meats.
Recipes are listed below.
1. Pelmieny
Pelmieny is a traditional Russian dish. The idea of pelmieny originated from Siberia where the winters are very cold and in the past people would make the pelmieny and then hang them outside in the winter where they would freeze naturally.
Pelmieny are frozen meat dumplings that are made from ground pork. This is a national food in Russia and a wintertime favorite. Pelmieny are best eaten with sour cream. If there are pelmieny left over, they can be fried until they are a golden brown and should be fried in butter.
For the dough
Flour, depending on how many pelmieny you want to make, you should start with at least two or three cups of flour.
Salt to taste
Water, depending on how many pelmieny you want to make, 1 to 3 cups.
Mix the flour, salt and water together until there are no lumps and you can form the dough easily.
For the filling
Ground pork, about two to three pounds for 20-30 pelmieny
Salt to taste
Ground black pepper to add spice to the pelmieny
One onion minced
Take the ground pork and mix together with the salt, pepper and minced onion. Onion can be minced in a typical food processor.
Once you have finished preparing both the dough and meat, take the dough and roll it out flat with a rolling pin. Take a regular round drinking glass to cut circles out of the dough and take a small gob of the meat filling and place in the middle of the meat filling. Pelmieny are traditionally small, so you want to make a large quantity of them.
After you have placed the small gobs of meat in the middle of the dough circles that you cut out with a drinking glass, fold the circle in half with the gob of meat in it. Use egg to close the seam. You can close the seam by gently depressing the two edges of the dough circle together. Use care in not puncturing the dough with the prongs of the fork.
Freeze the pelmieny for later consumption or boil them. To boil pelmieny, take a large pot of water and place it on high heat. As the water begins to boil, pour about two or three tablespoons of salt to give flavor. After water comes to a full boil, reduce the heat to medium and place the pelmieny in the water. Let pelmieny boil for a good 15-20 minutes to make sure that the meat is cooked through.
Frying left over pelmieny can be done in a frying pan with butter and fry both sides until they are golden brown.
2. Autumn dacha mushroom dish
It is a tradition in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine to go to the dacha during the summer. The early fall is a great time to go mushroom hunting. Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine are loaded with all kinds of great edible wild mushroom. There is not really a name for this dish, but it is prepared by the common folk all over Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
A dacha is a small house that is in the countryside, a short distance from the big cities. Though Russia is currently financially well off and many go to the dacha to relax and go mushroom picking as a hobby, in other republics such as Ukraine and Belarus, where economic conditions are harsher, the dacha has become a family vegetable garden and place to harvest the other bounties of Mother Nature. This type of dish is typically prepared either at the dacha or after returning from the dacha. The ingredients are listed below.
Assorted wild mushrooms which are other than the typical white mushrooms that you can find in the grocery store. Some groceries have specialty shops where you can find assorted wild mushrooms. Some of the best mushrooms that work well with this dish include the cep or porcini mushroom, shitake mushroom, oyster mushrooms and other wild mushrooms.
Two to three onions diced.
One head of garlic with the clothes separated and pealed. Each clothe of garlic should be cut in two to three pieces.
Liver chopped up into small cubes.
Strips of bacon cut up in two to three sections.
In a frying pan, start frying the pieces of bacon. Do not let the bacon fry to a crisp. As soon as the bacon starts releasing its grease, remove it from the frying pan. As the bacon grease is still boiling in the pan, add the diced onions and garlic.
Saut the onions and garlic until they are a golden brown and then add the liver. After the liver is slightly cooked, add the wild mushrooms. As the mushrooms begin to release their juices, add the bacon back into the mixture. Fry everything together while stirring with a wooden spoon from time to time. Serve hot.
3. Poltavski Halushki
This is a Ukrainian dish which is traditional in the Poltava region in eastern Ukraine. This dish was even mentioned in some of Gogol's novels. Halushki are basically dough dumplings that are boiled together in chicken soup. This is a very easy recipe to prepare.
For the dough
Flour, about two to three cups
Salt to taste
Water
Mix the flour, salt and water until you have an evenly mixed dough that has no lumps. Role the dough into balls that are about one-and-a-half inches in diameter
For the chicken
One whole chicken that is chopped up into pieces
Salt to taste
Dill
One head of garlic with clothes pealed and separated
Bay leaves
One onion cut into large pieces.
Boil the chicken to make the broth and add all the other ingredients. Add the halushki and boil for about a half an hour.
4. Khinkali
This is a Georgian meat dumpling. This is spicier than the Russian pelmieny. This dish originated from the mtianeti region of Georgia which is in the Caucasus Mountains near the Russian border.
A town in this region that is famous for its Khinkali is Pasanauri. Khinkali are a common dish that is loved by all Georgians and many Russians like them too. Khinkali are made differently from Russian pelmieny primarily in their shape. Khinkali are traditionally made to look like a head of garlic.
For the dough
Flour, about two to three cups
Salt to taste
Water, enough to make the dough formable
Mix the flour, water and salt together until there are no lumps in the mixture.
For the meat filling
Ground pork, beef, lamb or all three together
Salt to taste
One onion, minced in a food processor
Dzira or black pepper
Scant red pepper flakes
Mix the meat together with the spices and onion. Take the dough and roll it flat out with a rolling pin. Take a glass and cut circles out of the dough. Add a gob of meat filling to one of the circles and seal it by creasing the top and twist the top to form a nob.
Take a pot of boiling water on high heat and add salt while boiling the water. When the water comes a full boil, lower the heat to medium and add the khinkali. Boil for about 20 to 30 minutes. Serve while hot. You can also serve left over khinkali by frying them in a pan in butter.
Here are some recipes that are not just from Russia but from all over the former Soviet Union. "Happy Eating!"